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DOWNTOWN SMITHFIELD CORP. EXPANDS
INCENTIVES FOR NEW BUSINESSES, EVENTS
The Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation (DSDC) announces the creation of additional incentives to attract businesses and to encourage non-profits to hold events Downtown.
Two new incentives are the Downtown Smithfield Retail and Restaurant Rental/Upfit Subsidy Help program – R2 RUSH – and the Downtown Residential Incentive Fund – DRIF.
The goal of R2 RUSH is to attract new retail and restaurant businesses through incentives to help with up-fit or occupancy costs.
The purpose of DRIF is to boost residential development through a loan guarantee that would become a grant if used to cover the construction interest for new dwelling units Downtown.
Those incentives and others are covered in a new DSDC publication: “Getting Started – putting the pieces of the puzzle together to open your new business in Downtown Smithfield” (click here to download PDF version). It provides entrepreneurs a checklist for opening a business in Smithfield, including the permitting process as well as various grants, incentives, and funds that are available to investors looking to open or relocate businesses to Downtown Smithfield.
Besides R2 RUSH and DRIP, another business incentive covered in the publication is DSDC's SHARP grants program for rehabilitation of older buildings and promoting infill growth. (The first development to receive this grant was 7th Street Marketplace, also home to The Chicken Barn, located at the corner of Market and Seventh streets Downtown.)
"Getting Started" also includes information about assistance available through the N.C. Rural Center, the Golden LEAF Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development and Small Business Technology Development Center, the Small Business Association, traditional financial institutions, and federal and state historic-tax credits.
DSDC is also offering Joint Effort Marketing (JEM) grants for non-profit organizations or other collaboratives to use Downtown Smithfield as a venue for events and activities specifically targeted to attract visitors from geographical areas or demographic audiences new to Smithfield. DSDC will offer a matching grant up to 25% of the cost of approved advertising and marketing projects – up to $500 but no less than $50.
Click here for details about the various incentive programs offered by the Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation.
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